Systems such as energy harvesting systems may enable computing in a manner more diverse as compared to energy systems supplied by, e.g., an electrical grid, or a battery with a limited battery life. For example, energy harvesting systems may include one or more solar cells.
Many energy harvesting systems need DC-DC or AC-DC power conversion with very low control overhead to cater to their variable power nature and large dynamic range of transduced power. For example, solar cells change in output through the day with the sun and shadows cast on them. Portable applications experience even a larger variation. Low overhead control techniques and circuits are therefore important to successful energy harvesting for portable applications.